On Line Spectrograph Software

The Windward Community College Radio Observatory (WCCRO) and the University
of Florida Radio Observatory (UFRO) are equipped with special frequency sweeping
receivers designed and built by Richard Flagg. These receivers, called
spectrographs, allow you to see how radio signals are distributed across a 10
MHz wide swath of radio spectrum. The receivers are designed to be sensitive and
fast enough to detect changes which occur in the radio emissions of the Sun and
Jupiter. If you own an SDR14 radio from rfspace.com,
you can now use this software to produce your your own spectra of radio signals.

The software, produced by Radio-Sky Publishing
, will run on most modern Windows based computers with an internet connection
speed of 56K or more. There is no charge for use of the software for
non-commercial users. User support is limited. Download the software by
clicking on the link below.

(If you already have the program
installed and just want the latest update click
here.)

Installation
Install the
new Spectrograph software by running the file you downloaded above. After
installation and the first time you run the Radio-Sky Spectrograph program you
will see a panel that asks for a special usage code if you have one. Just
click OK. No code is needed for normal usage, so just press OK.

Installation Problems
If you have problems installing or getting the program to run please email Jim
Sky at:
Please include accurate descriptions of the problem; complete error messages, a
complete description of your computer and operating system, and detailed steps
of what you did before encountering the problem. I am happy to help but do not
want to have to guess at these things.

Setting Identity Options
Before connecting to Spectrographs on the internet you must set up
two options in the program, your name and time zone. Click on Options then
Identity then Observer and enter your name. Now click on Options then
Identity and Time Zone. Under Time Zone enter the hours by which your
local clock differs from Universal Time. For example, here in Hawaii our
clocks lag UT by 10 hours so we input -10. If you do not set the time zone
your files will be recorded in local time which is not the standard for
scientific observations!

Network Options
In most cases, there is nothing for you to set up under Options / Network,
however, it is possible that if you have your computer behind a firewall you may
need to change your local port number and/or set up you firewall to allow
network traffic to pass to the local port number shown under Options / Network /
Local Connection. You should never have to change anything under Remote
Connection unless you hear from us that we are changing network settings at the
observatories.

File Saving Options
The default File Saving Options are probably OK. You can elect to have the
program start saving immediately upon connection to the Spectrograph servers by deselecting
No Automatic Save. When No Automatic Save is checked, that means the program
will wait for your go ahead before it begins saving a streaming chart. The Save On
Demand option displays the Start Saving / Stop Saving button in the lower
right corner of the main screen.

File Review
Only one option appears under File Review and that is the Average Data
option. It is an import option because it determines how the data is
displayed when you go back and review a file you have saved. Each file is
made up of the spectrum scans done by the Spectrograph at the observatory. These
files can be very large. The Average Data option means that reviewed data
that contains more lines than can fit on the display will have multiple lines
averaged so they will fit. If this option is deselected then every x-th
line of file is used to fill the display.